NC NC - Bryan Smith, 20, Wilmington, 1 May 1994

http://www.ncdoj.gov/Crime/Solve-Crimes/SBI-Unsolved-Crimes/Bryan-Keith-Smith.aspx
Description:
On Sunday, May 1, 1994 around midnight, Brian Smith was last seen alone on Front Street between the Ice House Bar and the Micky Ratz Nightclub in Wilmington. The next week on Sunday, May 8, 1994, his body was found in Towncreek (Brunswick County) approximately eight miles from the Towncreek bridge on Highway 17.

Special attention should be given to this notice in England since the icebreaker, the HMS Endurance, was in port at the time and some of sailors from that ship may have seen or heard something which would provide important information to investigators. The victim also spelled his name as Bryan.

If you have information about this case, call the Brunswick County Sheriff's Office (910) 253-2777. If you have information about this case or any unsolved case in North Carolina, please contact the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation by email SBI Operations Center or by phone (800) 334-3000.

$6,000 REWARD for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the murder of Brian Keith Smith.
 
From May 2011:

http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20110507/articles/110509776?p=1&tc=pg

Lou Smith is celebrating Mother's Day with her daughter Heather, 39, and her son Marion, 37.

She also will celebrate the lives of her sister Nancy and son Bryan – Marion's twin – both of whom died on the same day 17 years ago.

Nancy died of a heart attack. Bryan was murdered.

His body was found six days later, on Mother's Day. The murder case has yet to be solved.

From May 2015:

http://www.wect.com/story/29011020/murder-case-remains-unsolved-21-years-later

After years of unanswered questions, Bryan Smith's murder remains unsolved. May 8 marks 21 years since his body was found...
 
bryansmith.jpg
Let me thank whoever posted this thread! This is a local case for me! He is buried in the same cemetery as my uncle and his tombstone was one of the ones that had a picture, and I remember always looking at it as a child (same photo as above from what I remember). My mom told me he had been murdered. My mom actually knew his mother Lou from the twins club.
Until Smith met other mothers who had lost a twin child, she said she hadn’t fully appreciated the bond that exists between twins. Source: http://www.starnewsonline.com/news/...ttersweet-reminder-for-mother-of-murdered-son
My mom was among these mothers, my twin sister died at 2 months old in 1991.

I actually walked to the area Bryan was last seen a few months ago. I wandered around the area wondering what it was like in 1993.

From what I always heard about the case was that he was possibly killed over a dispute over a girl. Searching for that info I found that was actually from a psychic:
Originally Posted by :
DATELINE BRUNSWICK; Mom asks sheriff to listen to psychic
Star-News (Wilmington, NC)
Wednesday, January 28, 1998
Author: DIANA D'ABRUZZO, Staff writer

Grasping for clues in her son's unsolved murder , Lou Smith turned to a talk show psychic last month.

Now she's trying to get the Brunswick County Sheriff's Department to act on the psychic's tips.

Ms. Smith's son, Bryan Keith Smith, was found dead more than three years ago in Brunswick County. Detectives continue to come up empty-handed.

Taking the matter into her own hands, Ms. Smith flew to New York in December to appear on The Montel Williams Show for a segment on unsolved murders . The episode is scheduled to air at 3 p.m. Friday on NBC.

Sylvia Browne , a woman who claims to be psychic and regularly makes talk show appearances, talked to Ms. Smith and Bryan's twin brother, Marion, on and off air and gave her own answers to some of the Smiths' burning questions.

''She gave us names and identities and even information on where it happened,'' said Ms. Smith, who didn't elaborate on details. ''We took it all to the Sheriff's Department. I hope they're going to follow these leads.''
...
Bryan Smith's decomposed body was found May 8, 1994, in Town Creek with a slit throat. The 20-year-old was last seen seven days earlier, talking to a British sailor in front of the Barbary Coast bar in downtown Wilmington. The British naval ship HMS Endurance was docked in Wilmington at the time.

Ms. Browne told the family that the answers to the murder lie on that British ship, Ms. Smith said. The psychic believes the murder happened after Bryan rejected a woman from the ship, she said.

Ms. Browne couldn't give a name of the ''rejected woman'' but described her. The description matched that of a female British sailor Marion met days before Bryan disappeared. Marion met the woman through his brother, Ms. Smith said.

Ms. Browne also gave Ms. Smith names of those on the ship who may be connected to the murder .
...
''I would like to see Brunswick County Sheriff's Department get out and do something and solve these cases that are solvable,'' Ms. Smith said. ''They can solve this. They have these leads, and they need to work them.''

Bryan Keith Smith
20 Years Old
August 1, 1973 to May 8, 1994
Bryan Keith Smith, of Wilmington, North Carolina, was a very thoughtful person. He was a patient, loving young man with the most beautiful eyes in the world. He had a wonderful sense of humor and a smile that would light up a room. Bryan played baseball and loved to surf. He was an excellent swimmer. Bryan was a high school graduate and was working. He had his twin brother, Marion, shared an apartment and did everything together. Marion recently fathered a child and named him after Bryan. Bryan's memory is cherished by his Mom and Dad, his sister Heather, Marion, and his nephew Rhyan who he loved and taught to say "uncle" when he was only 11 months old.

CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE MURDER
On Sunday, May 1, 1994, at approximately 8:30 pm, 20-year-old Bryan Keith Smith left his apartment with a friend to go downtown to a bar called The Ice House. Friends stated that they partied until the early morning hours of that next morning, which was the last time they saw him. Bryan was seen later that same day at approximately 11:00 am on Highway 17 in Brunswick County. He reportedly had his hands in the air and was in the presence of four people at the Town Creek Bridge. Bryan's body was found May 8, 1994, six days after being in the creek. His throat had been slit and he was wearing only his shirt and socks. His murder remains unsolved. source: http://www.pomc.com/mw_stories_1-19/bryan_smith.html
Him being last seen with four individuals on the Town Creek Bridge is new information to me.

Lou Smith, the victim’s mother, said in an interview shortly after the murder that her son was last seen alive on May 1, 1994, talking with a sailor in front of the Barbary Coast bar in Wilmington. Source: http://www.starnewsonline.com/news/20030910/first-arrest-made-in-9-year-old-murder
This is also new information to me. What's funny is I was at the Barbary Coast yesterday. Back in the day it was a real rough biker bar. It has been here forever though so I'm not sure how it was in 93. Mickey Ratz was a gay bar located on 115 S Front St and is currently Aubriana's Steak and Seafood. From accounts I have read is that Marines would get in hate crime brawls, in other words "gay bashing", with the bars customers. I found this article: http://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/14/us/3-marines-are-acquitted-of-assault-at-gay-bar.html The Ice House bar on 115 Water st is also defunct and most likely was his destination to see a band (some sources list as reason for going downtown). The Ice House was a music venue/bar that opened in 1990 and was demolished in 2004.

Also mentioned in the prior article is they had arrested someone for Bryan's murder and had a warrant for another's arrest. Her name is Susan T. Tester, and she isn't the suspected killer, but was charged as an accessory for Bryan's murder and kidnapping. She was 25 at the time of the 2003 article so that would make her 16 at the time of the killing. The other person mentioned was John Virgil Masters. Not much was said about him. I can't find anything else on either of them.
 
Justice for Bryan. I could not find any new information about John Virgil Masters than what was mentioned above. I don't know if the arrest warrant is still valid or not in regards to Masters. This case would be an excellent subject for the LordanArts Youtube channel presented by John Lordan. He covers unsolved murder and missing person cases.
 
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Let me thank whoever posted this thread! This is a local case for me! He is buried in the same cemetery as my uncle and his tombstone was one of the ones that had a picture, and I remember always looking at it as a child (same photo as above from what I remember). My mom told me he had been murdered. My mom actually knew his mother Lou from the twins club.
My mom was among these mothers, my twin sister died at 2 months old in 1991.

I actually walked to the area Bryan was last seen a few months ago. I wandered around the area wondering what it was like in 1993.

From what I always heard about the case was that he was possibly killed over a dispute over a girl. Searching for that info I found that was actually from a psychic:



Him being last seen with four individuals on the Town Creek Bridge is new information to me.


This is also new information to me. What's funny is I was at the Barbary Coast yesterday. Back in the day it was a real rough biker bar. It has been here forever though so I'm not sure how it was in 93. Mickey Ratz was a gay bar located on 115 S Front St and is currently Aubriana's Steak and Seafood. From accounts I have read is that Marines would get in hate crime brawls, in other words "gay bashing", with the bars customers. I found this article: http://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/14/us/3-marines-are-acquitted-of-assault-at-gay-bar.html The Ice House bar on 115 Water st is also defunct and most likely was his destination to see a band (some sources list as reason for going downtown). The Ice House was a music venue/bar that opened in 1990 and was demolished in 2004.

Also mentioned in the prior article is they had arrested someone for Bryan's murder and had a warrant for another's arrest. Her name is Susan T. Tester, and she isn't the suspected killer, but was charged as an accessory for Bryan's murder and kidnapping. She was 25 at the time of the 2003 article so that would make her 16 at the time of the killing. The other person mentioned was John Virgil Masters. Not much was said about him. I can't find anything else on either of them.

If the police arrested Susan T. Tester
and charged her with an accessory for Bryan's murder and kidnapping I wonder why they couldn't find out during her investigation who murdered Bryan and why.

Almost 24 years past, I pray for justice for Bryan and his family,
 
Justice for Bryan. I could not find any new information about John Virgil Masters than what was mentioned above. I don't know if the arrest warrant is still valid or not in regards to Masters. This case would be an excellent subject for the LordanArts Youtube channel presented by John Lordan. He covers unsolved murder and missing person cases.
I was married to Bryans twin brother Marion. John Virgil Masters died in 2014. With that being said, they have re-opened Bryans case and hopefully someday we will have some answers. Unfortunately, Marion and his mother have both passed away recently and I hate that they never got to see justice for Bryan or never truly knew what happened.
 
I have been researching this case and it drives me crazy that there is one article about the arrest of Susan Tester and then nothing. Every interview and article after that does not mention Tester or Masters at all.
I was married to Bryans twin brother Marion. John Virgil Masters died in 2014. With that being said, they have re-opened Bryans case and hopefully someday we will have some answers. Unfortunately, Marion and his mother have both passed away recently and I hate that they never got to see justice for Bryan or never truly knew what happened.
 
I was married to Bryans twin brother Marion. John Virgil Masters died in 2014. With that being said, they have re-opened Bryans case and hopefully someday we will have some answers. Unfortunately, Marion and his mother have both passed away recently and I hate that they never got to see justice for Bryan or never truly knew what happened.
Stephanie, I need to talk to you about Bryan. I'm Danny S. half sister.
 
October 2017 update

Brian spelled his name "Bryan"

On Friday, April 29th, Bryan was with some friends in downtown Wilmington. They were at the Ice House Bar when the girl he was with decided she wanted to go dancing. They stopped at Barbary Coast. The girl and her friends went inside and Bryan continued to talk to the soldiers outside. When they came back out, they were gone. He wasn't heard from or seen alive again.

On Sunday May 8th, two fisherman found his body floating in the river. He was found approx. 8 miles from the Town Creek bridge on Highway 17 in Brunswick County of Town Creek, NC. The autopsy revealed that he died from his throat being cut.

Per the NCSBI, he was last seen on Sunday May 1st around midnight between the Ice House Bar and the Micky Ratz Nightclub in Wilmington, NC.

During the time of his death, the HMS Endurance was at port and investigators believed the British soldiers from the boat may have seen something. An officer went to London to interview soldiers that were on the ship during the time of Bryan's death.
 

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